


No Really, I Work Here

by adenineTransfixion, Yumimages



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Kaiju, Aquariums, Collaboration, Fish, Hermann's kid is adorable, M/M, Newt's a dork, Single father Hermann, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-28
Updated: 2014-09-12
Packaged: 2018-02-15 03:17:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2213793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adenineTransfixion/pseuds/adenineTransfixion, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yumimages/pseuds/Yumimages
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I work here! See, I’ve got a fancy name tag and everything!"</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A collaboration with my wonderful GF, YesSoMaybeNo! Our first one-shot! Possibly with more to come!

Being a tour guide was fun enough, but it got draining by the time the last shift came around. If Newt had worked anywhere else he probably wouldn’t have been able to stand it. Here though, he could spend his time in between rushes recharging near his favorite displays, watching shoals of silver sardines, and the kelp forest and sharks. He was loitering near the stingray tank, about to wander through the tube again when he noticed them, standing alone in a quiet corner with one thumb firmly ensconced in their mouth. It was unusual to see a kid so quiet and motionless in a place like this, and it was enough to make him pause and hang around a little longer. After a few minutes with no sign of a parent in the vicinity Newt built up the resolve to cautiously approach, crouching down in front of the young brunet.

“Hey, kiddo! Whatcha doing over here, you waiting for someone?” the kid eyed him suspiciously with absolutely huge brown eyes surrounded by doe-like lashes and popped their damp thumb out of their mouth.

“ _Vater_ \- mmn, papa says not to speak to strangers when he’s not around.”

Oh my god. This kid was adorable. And smart. He doubted that the comment about their dad coming was actually true but Newton still nodded gravely, fighting back a grin. “Your father sounds very smart.” He paused, looking around, and focused in on the kid again. They were looking slightly softer around the edges already, as if Newt’s agreement had made him more trustworthy. “Here, my name’s Dr. Newton Geiszler, but you can call me Newt. I work here!” he pulled his name tag away from his shirt so it was more visible and tapped it. “See, I’ve got a fancy name tag and everything! Now you know who I am, will you tell me _your_ name?”

“... Kasper Arvin Gottlieb, nice to meet you...” Newton’s eyebrows almost popped off his face they rose so quickly. That had to be the most _German_ name he had ever heard outside his own family. Wow.

“Ok Kasper- can I call you Kasper? Or do you prefer Arvin?” Newton asked the child, trailing off at the end.

“My name is Kasper.” Kasper said with narrowed eyes, popping his thumb back in his mouth.

“Right, right. Okay, so Kasper, can you tell me who you came here with? Since I work here I can take you to the front desk and call for them over the loudspeaker for you. Or if you’re meeting up with someone here I can hang around to make sure nobody bugs you.”

Kasper seemed to think for a moment before speaking, emphasized by a wet pop. “I came here with my _vater_ \- er, papa. I’m waiting for him.”

“Cool, can I sit with you, then?” The boy nodded with the sort of royal aplomb only a child or the particularly vain can achieve, so Newt crab stepped over a few feet and slid down against the wall with a huff. Newt immediately started talking, pointing out the various species in the tank across from them, and telling Kasper random facts about each one. He quickly ran out of things to say about the species in front of them and began talking about various other animals in the aquarium. They sat like that for somewhere around a quarter of an hour before Newt began to suspect he had been right about the kid’s bluff.

“So… be honest with me right now, do you actually know where your _vater_ is?” Newt smiled, trying to seem more trustworthy than his usual demeanor would suggest. Kasper hesitated for a long time, nervously wiping his damp thumb against the side of his leg.

“Mm… no.” Good. At least he wouldn’t need to press and loose the fragile trust he had managed to gain.

“Do you want me to help you find him maybe?”

Kasper nodded slowly. “Okay.”

“What’s his name?”

“Dunno.” Kasper shrugged, frowning in a way that scrunched his face up. “He’s just _vater_. Erm… he’s a math- mathma- mathmagician, I think…” Newt snorted.

“Mathematician,” He hoisted himself to his feet and extended a hand to the kid, sleeve riding up to show off the very edge of his brightly colored tattoos. “C’mon kiddo. Let’s go find your dad.” They started off down through the tube, and despite the glorious array of sea life swimming all around on the other side of the walls Kasper’s eyes remained fixed on that tiny glimpse of colorful skin. Newt could almost feel it. “You wanna see?”

Kasper went wide-eyed and nodded vigorously, so Newton began to unbutton and roll up his uniform sleeves, revealing wonderfully detailed representations of a dozen different species and some that didn’t even exist. “Pretty cool, huh? See, this here is a leatherback sea turtle,” He exclaimed, pointing out an intricate portion near his wrist, “Two thousand pounds of awesome, but they start out about the size of a golf ball! And up here we’ve got the infamous kraken, giant black jellyfish and- uh…”

“What? What is it?”

Newt blushed. “Thats a- uh- axolotl, you know, like I told you about?  I had a little space left from the giant isopod and squid piece… so I sorta just picked something.”

Nose wrinkled doubtfully, Kasper peered at the small illustration on Newt’s elbow. “It’s... _pink_.’

“W-well there’s nothing wrong with pink, you know! That’s just the most commonly known color of axolotls. Some of them are black, or green, or orange. But there are a lot of pink animals that are really cool! Don’t dis the pink, dude.” He continued on in this vein, even managing to coax a few giggles from his young companion as they wandered through the exhibits in a mostly random pattern. “So, uh, what exactly does your dad look like? I mean, for all I know we could have missed him already.”

“Um… he’s gotta cane, and um, a really frowny, face, but he’s got brown eyes like me, and mom says he wears old man clothes. I guess, and- and- um, he’s tall, like _really_ tall! Taller than you!” That sounded… sort of terrible, actually.

“That’s not saying much, dude. I’m sort of tiny, I only _seem_ tall because you’re so very itty-bitty.”

“Well _yeah_ , but i’m a kid! You’re _supposed_ to be taller!” Newt was in the middle of grasping desperately at his heart in preparation for a truly masterful monologue on the anguish and heartbreak he was experiencing when Kasper was suddenly ramrod straight and grinning like a loon. Kasper popped away from his spot next to Newton and half ran, half skipped towards the other side of the room.

“Hey, where’re you going… little… dude?” He caught sight of the man whose legs Kasper was currently wrapping himself around. Oh lord. Shit. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck it. Newt stood frozen, and possibly gaping a little as Kasper talks excitedly to the man Newt can only assume is his dad. The guy was _seriously hot_.

“ _Vater_!” Kasper exclaimed, “did you know axolotls have a thing called neoteny?” He drew out the last word, enunciating very carefully. The man’s hand- which was rested against the back of Kasper’s head, gently holding him close-- relaxed and slipped to his son’s shoulder.

“Kasper! What on earth-?” This was so unfair. Even his _voice_ was sexy. “Where have you _been_? What have I told you about running about alone?”

“I wasn’t _alone_ , Mr. Newton was with me!”

“Mr… Newton?”

Newt raised his head and took a step towards Kasper and his dad. “Hi. Uh... I’m Dr. Newton Geiszler, call me Newt! Uh, wow you’re hot- I mean, uh! Your kid is- not hot! I meant, your kid was- you are- wandering? Oh gosh.” Kasper’s father blinked, once, twice, then turned faintly red and gave a awkward, flustered smile. Kasper began to giggle helplessly.

“Dr… Geiszler, was it? Perhaps… you wish to give that another try?”

Newt blushed. “Yeah, um, Hi! My name is Newton, call me Newt! I noticed Kasper over by the underwater tube by himself and thought I would see if I could help…”

Kasper’s dad nodded and replied, “My name is Dr. Hermann Gottlieb. Thank you for taking care of Kasper while he was by himself. Um, if you wouldn’t mind, I would like to express my gratitude. Perhaps… lunch?”

Newt perks up at that, a bright sunny grin spreading across his face. He adjusted his glasses. “It-it was really no trouble! But I mean, I never turn down free food, especially when the one asking is such a catch! Haha!” Newt rubs the back of this neck, trying to diffuse the tension there.

“Oh oh _vater_! Can we go to the Hansen’s diner? Pleeeaaaase?” Kasper begs, making his eyes wide and clutching Hermann’s shirt. Hermann stared down at him.

“Of course, If... Newton does not object?”

Newton grinned even wider, bouncing on his heels. “Sure, I’m game! Let’s get this show on the road!”

Hell. Yes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hermann has disappeared off the radar and Newt is feeling a little regretful. Luckily not for long!

It was hard not to get discouraged in a situation like this. It had been nearly a month since he had gone on the quasi-date-- he wasn’t quite sure what else to call it-- with Hermann Gottlieb and Newt couldn’t get him out of his head. They had spent more time talking to and entertaining Kasper than getting to know each other, but Newt had still had a good time. Then, after all that, it had completely slipped his mind to arrange a second date, or even offer to exchange contact info. He was more disappointed in himself than in any awkwardness on the part of the date.

Today Newt was working again, giving tours in the aquarium. He had started thinking of how he would explain things to Kasper, and giving his tours like that. Sometimes he would get families coming back and saying how much their kids loved his talks, and it made him happy, especially since it had started happening more now. He had about 15 minutes before his next tour, and he was meandering back to the meeting spot when he saw a familiar head of hair through the thinning crowd. Excited, he rushed to catch up only to stumble into an open courtyard. Neither Hermann nor Kasper were in sight. He sighed inwardly and headed back inside. 

It just… felt sort of lonely now. The fish were nice, and he enjoyed telling people about them but… they were just fish, not anything to make a personal connection with. Fish had nothing on reptiles. As soon as he had finished his last tour for the day he wandered over to the gift shop to chat idly with his sort-of friend, Tendo. He wound his way through racks full of stuffed animals and shelves of snow globes and keychains. 

“Hey Tendo, dude!” 

Tendo held up a hand as he rang up a purchase for the customer in front of him. “One sec! Just lemme finish up here and I’ll be right with ya!” Within moments Tendo was leaning over the counter, grinning brightly. “How’s it going, my main man?”

“Oh, you know, just sort of…ehh...” Newt trailed off with a complicated gesture somewhere between creatively expressive and plain bewildering. 

Tendo nodded, “Relationship trouble? I know the feeling.” How in the fuck he had figured that out from only the one gesture was beyond Newt, but the sudden lack of a need for explanation was welcome.

Newt sighed “It’s just- he’s so- and his kid is really- but then- I fucked up. Damn it, he might be married for all I know.”

“How do you not know that, dude? And he has a kid? You sure you know what you're getting into?”

“I dunno. I didn’t exactly ask? I was sort of distracted.” Newt shrugged broadly. “And yeah, his kid is cute as all get out. Don’t dis the kid. Seriously, dude, you have no idea.”

“So he’s hot then?”

“Oh he is so hot. He’s got this adorable froggy face, like he’s trying to disapprove of everything in existence ever, and this stupid, fluffy, Alan Turing wannabe undercut thats just fucking cute… He walks with a cane but in this, like, really kick ass, ‘don’t-dare-comment-or-I-will-end-you’ sort of way.”

“And uh, this guy, does he like really terrible sweaters?”

“Yeah, man, I guess you could call them that.” Gosh, those sweaters really were kind of horrible, weren’t they… just the thought of them made Newt smile dopily. 

“And ah, granny glasses? Sorta like, on a chain?”

“Yeah, Tendo. How’d you-? Have you met him?”

“No. He just sounds like the sort… a bit like… that lost looking gentleman, right there. In fact, I think your boyfriend’s here, Newt, my man.” Tendo points easily at a spot just over Newt’s shoulder, in the general direction of the lobby. 

Eyelids fluttering slightly in a series of rapid blinks, Newton gaped for words. “Huh-?” He glanced over his shoulder, half expecting it to be a joke of some sort. It wasn’t. There, across the room, looking around like he was searching for something or was lost, was Hermann. “Hu-Hermann?” He breathed, a slow grin spreading across his features. Holy shit. 

“Whoa, holy crap! That’s actually him? I was just joking!” The volume of Tendo’s exclamation rang out over the background chatter of crowds and caught the thin man’s attention. Hermann’s face relaxed and he took a step towards the gift shop before hesitating. Seemingly shaking something off he resumed his path and walked directly towards Newt and Tendo. Holy shit. 

“Dr. Geiszler, I-”

“Call me Newt, Hermann! Only my mother calls me doctor! Uh, this is my friend Tendo Choi.” 

“Gottlieb, Hermann Gottlieb. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Mr. Choi.”

Tendo saluted, grinning. “Pleased as punch. Well, Newt, looks like you’ve got things to discuss. I’ll talk to you later, yeah?”

“Yeah, sure. See you later, man.” Tendo took off to the other end of the counter, making himself pointedly busy organizing shelves before disappearing into the stockroom. Newton shuffled a bit. “So… uh, you here with Kasper again?”

“Well… Newton. I- no, he’s at home. I… In fact I, ah, came here to speak with you.”

“What, really?” he squeaked, “cool! I mean, awesome! I uh, wanted to talk to you too, Herms!” 

“Herms-?” Hermann huffed and shifted. “...yes, quite. Kasper is with his mother for the day and since I had nothing to occupy my time, found myself thinking about… you and, ah, wondering if you had the time for and would be amenable to a repeat of our last encounter. That is to say, dinner?” His fingers went white around the knuckles as his hand clenched around the handle of his cane.

Holy. Shit. Dream come fucking true. 

“Yeah! Yes. Yes, dinner sounds great! Fantastic, actually! Just, uh, i’ve still got a bit before I’m off work, one more shift, should we meet up somewhere or...?” Hermann’s spidery fingers relaxed and flexed languidly. 

“I would actually like to join your next tour, if you don’t mind. I was required to purchase a ticket to get in here and I did not have time to see very much last time I was here. I haven't the slightest clue about biology so a guide would be appreciated.” A slight, crooked smile twisted his thin lips and narrowed his pretty eyes, as Hermann blinked slowly in the pause between words. “...That you would be the guide in question would of course be the proverbial icing on the cake, Newton.” 

Newt stood shocked, wide-eyed, before grinning back. “Mm, well I do love icing, you’ll just have to share with me.”

Tendo wandered past them, a cardboard box overflowing with plushies balanced in his arms. “Whoa there, man, I don’t need to know! Let me get out of your way before you start kink trading!”

“Shut up, Tendo!” Newt snapped, keeping his gaze fixed on Hermann’s reddening face.

Hermann coughed into his fist. “Yes, well, I believe the tour is starting soon. If you would care to escort me…?” Newt sketched a dramatic bow and offered his arm like a lord to his lady. Almost as soon as he did it he realized it might not be seen in a positive light, but it was too late so he carried it through and hoped for the best.

“My pleasure!”

He sighed with relief as, after the barest breath’s hesitation, Hermann switched his cane to his free hand and hooked his arm over Newt’s and with only a slight adjustment of pace Newt led him away, making the beginning of the tour with barely enough time for a quick smile before he was greeting everyone cheerfully and the tour was underway. 

Never before had Newt given a tour like this one, it seemed like an entirely new experience even though he had to have done the same thing over a hundred times before. Now, though, he was conscious of every word and gesture, and had a target to direct his brightest smiles at. It was strange, the difference a single spectator could make to his everyday performance. Better yet, Hermann seemed to be enjoying it as well, if the way his eyes narrowed with concentration at a particularly interesting fact, or gleamed when faced with an especially beautiful creature was any indication, and when he did occasionally frown or seem a bit lost it challenged Newt to do better. It was invigorating, and Newton himself seemed enhanced by the experience, a little more enthusiasm and verve shining through in his performance.

He was nearly bouncing when the tour ended and he was finally able to jump off his podium and move over to where Hermann was still sitting, staring up at the multitudes of sharks and sardines and large ocean fish drifting past in the giant, floor to ceiling tank. “You ready to get out of here?” Hermann watched the fish for a moment longer, nodding in a distracted manner before letting his eyes glide over to Newton, corners crinkling brightly. 

“Yes, of course.” 

They decided not to go to Hensen’s again so soon and instead made their way to a small restaurant several blocks away. Newt claimed a booth near the back that still skirted the edge of being a window spot. They were mostly silent as they both sorted through the menu and ordered, and would have probably spent much longer just staring at each other if Newt hadn’t been struck with a determined streak. He laced his fingers, planted both elbows firmly on the table and grinned widely at his silent companion. Before he spoke he took a moment to admire the curve of his high cheekbones and the neat flip of his hair. God, the man was so unfairly attractive. 

“So! If you don’t like fish, what do you like, Herms?” 

“Ah… well, I am rather fond of astronomy, though I do not have the opportunity to indulge all that often.” The taller man divulged quietly, “and I do not dislike fish, I simply do not find them relevant to my current field and have not been inclined to learn of them besides the basics. Kasper has always enjoyed the soft sciences more than I.”

Newton winced. “I dunno if soft sciences is the right term to use, dude.” 

Hermann blinked twice rapidly, and quickly belted out an anxious response. “Oh, no! I don’t mean that in the usual sense. I mean science having to do with organic materials and concepts, such as biology or anatomy, soft tissue sciences, if you will, though it is more of a personal generalization...”

“Huh. Weird. But, okay. So, uh, what’s the deal with Kasper anyways? Are you divorced, or…?” 

“No, no. Kasper’s mother and I were never together. Vanessa has been a very good friend to me for many years, and more recently a wife to my sister, Karla. We have never been interested in each other romantically. I am however the closest male genetic match in the family so when they decided they wanted a child…” He trailed off, giving a gesture that implied a shrug without actually being one. Newt got that, kids were cool, but boy was it ever crap if you wanted to have one and happened to be not biologically able. Having a sibling do the honors seemed like a fairly simple solution if you had the means. Newt nodded and moved on.

Conversation flowed smoothly from there, roaming through religion-- Hermann’s family was Jewish, but he didn’t practice, and Newt hovered somewhere between atheist and agnostic-- to favorite flowers-- Trillium, and Cornflower respectively. The more they talked, the more Newt liked Hermann. Sure they ended up getting a little too heated over quite a few subjects over dinner, but it was always the details they disagreed on, not the overall concept. He was… strangely wonderful, and better yet he seemed to enjoy Newton’s companionship just as much. Hermann was solid in his views, consistently a little old fashioned and utterly fascinating. Not to mention he doted on his kid the way only a really great parent could, balancing blatant affection with admonitions.

Over dessert, when discussion became sedate and slow and Newt bubbled with anxiety and wanted nothing more than to stay there forever, he mulled over his options restlessly. Finally stretching a hesitant hand across the table to brush hermann’s knuckles in a gesture far more subtle than he usually used, and spoke.

“Hey, uh, I’ve really been having a great time… we should… we should do this again sometime. I mean-” stumbling over his words awkwardly, Newt had to stop and breathe before starting again. “I mean If you want to.”

Hermann smiled, slow and warm, agreement on his tongue, and Newt felt more relieved than he had ever felt before. Everything was going right, and-

and- 

Newt thought he might just have been falling in love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! There goes the second part! Boy oh boy was this a bitch to write... hopefully it's as good as we strived to make it! Hope you enjoyed!


End file.
